COVID-19 screening strategies that permit the safe re-opening of college campuses.

ABSTRACT:

Importance

The COVID-19 pandemic poses an existential threat to many US residential colleges: either they open their doors to students in September or they risk serious financial consequences.

Objective

To define SARS-CoV-2 screening performance standards that would permit the safe return of students to campus for the Fall 2020 semester.

Design

Decision and cost-effectiveness analysis linked to a compartmental epidemic model to evaluate campus screening using tests of varying frequency (daily-weekly), sensitivity (70%-99%), specificity (98%-99.7%), and cost ($10-$50/test). Reproductive numbers Rt = {1.5, 2.5, 3.5} defined three epidemic scenarios, with additional infections imported via exogenous shocks. We generally adhered to US government guidance for parameterizat

SUBMITTER: Paltiel AD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7359539 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature